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Land Rover Freelander
The all-new Land Rover Freelander 2 is a star of London Motor Show and a modern, thoroughly updated version of the car it replaces.
Geoff Upex, Land Rover's design director, has plenty of admiration for the old model but is well aware of its failings. 'When we asked customers what they thought of it, they always liked the way the old one looked. There might be a list of 50 things they didn't like about it, but the design wasn't one of them.
'It defined what a small SUV should be like, but it had a slightly toy-like quality. One lady customer described the old one as "cute" but the new one as "smart". Part of the problem was that the old one had too much tumblehome [the side windows sloped inwards too much towards the roof]. So for the new one we had to work out how to imply a premium look while also a tough look - not too tough, but tough enough.'
The old Freelander tried too hard, Upex feels. 'It had a spare wheel on the back and black wheelarches, but you don't need to do that with a Land Rover. People know it's a proper 4x4 already.'
There's a longer front overhang in the Freelander than in other Land Rovers, the result of its transverse engine layout. This gives it a more car-like quality, but there are plenty of other Land Rover-like details. The front grille and front wing vents are like a Range Rover Sport's, the blacked in rear pillars are also Range Rover, the broad, body-colour rear side pillars and the kicked-up rear roof are Discovery.
But there's an even bigger change inside, not just in the quality but in the space.
'People didn't like the inside of the old one,' says Geoff Upex, 'and that's assuming they could actually get inside it.'
Is he referring to some electrical door-lock gremlin like the ones that afflicted the mid-90s Range Rover? No, it's simpler than that.
Is he referring to some electrical door-lock gremlin like the ones that afflicted the mid-90s Range Rover? No, it's simpler than that.
'Some of our larger American customers just couldn't get into the old car without squeezing past the roof and getting jammed by the steering wheel. Once they were in it was OK, but getting in and out was a struggle. The new car gives them much more space.'
There's more pace, too, with the 3.2-litre, six-cylinder petrol engine option to replace the torpid and now-dead Rover KV6 engine. All of which points to a gap in the Land Rover range below the bigger, better Freelander, especially as this time there's no three-door version. Will there be a new baby Land Rover, then?
'We're looking at it, of course, but to make money on small cars means making big volumes and we're not big enough to do that. And it might not be right for Land Rover as a premium brand. We can work on the next Range Rover or a new Defender of a small Land Rover, but we can't do them all at once. The question is, which one would you choose?' We await the answer with interest.
